Chapter 275: This is impossible! Impossible! (6k)

Facing the decision of the Lu Yuanzhi sisters, Zhou Qing, after a brief moment of being stunned, immediately showed wild joy.

This is too okay!

If two Soul Severance realm powerhouses can be stationed at Taiqingmen, this is simply a huge opportunity!

At that time, even Sect Master Shibo and others would have to treat them as honored guests.

With such strong reinforcements, many concerns in previous actions would vanish.

"You, are you sure?" Zhou Qing, having come to his senses, excitedly confirmed again.

Lu Yuanzhi nodded and said: "Naturally. You saved my Big Sister's life; to me, that is a kindness of rebirth, and this kindness must be repaid."

Zhou Qing was stunned but quickly calmed down, shaking his head with a bitter smile: "Although I hope you can come to Taiqingmen, if it's just to repay kindness, there is no need."

"Previously, Senior Jiu gifted me the Mysterious Ice Marrow, and you taught Junior Sister Yaoyao with care; this friendship is already settled. If you join Taiqingmen just because of kindness, I would find it hard to be at ease."

Lu Yuanzhi smiled knowingly, her eyes full of sincerity: "We are definitely not doing this reluctantly, but truly yearning for it. To us, Taiqingmen is a home, not a burden."

Zhou Qing pondered for a moment, suddenly remembering something, and said with a solemn expression: "What about Imperial Consort Chen? Once you step into the Soul Severance realm, the Imperial Capital will definitely try to win you over. At that time, helping her regain freedom shouldn't be difficult, right?"

Lu Yuanzhi's expression suddenly dimmed, as if she had already made a decision in her heart.

Then she said heavily: "Within the Holy Martial Dynasty, almost all Soul Severance realm cultivators have received the favor of the Old Emperor's breakthrough formula."

"Or rather, they all begged for it there and reached some kind of deal to be able to advance."

"My Big Sister and I have never received their favor, nor do we owe them anything. What do you think will happen if we want Third Sister to be free?"

Zhou Qing frowned, suddenly realizing, and said: "Imperial Consort Chen is the chip to restrain you!"

Lu Yuanzhi nodded: "Exactly, so this matter cannot be rushed. Moreover, even if Third Sister dislikes the current Emperor Xuan Yuan Hao, Xuan Yuan Muqian is after all her own flesh and blood, and her sustenance for many years."

"If we rashly take Third Sister away, the Xuan Yuan family will definitely use Muqian as a threat. At that time, Third Sister will fall into a dilemma again."

Zhou Qing sighed lightly.

Getting sick today, encountering danger tomorrow, being forced to marry someone she doesn't like the day after.

If Imperial Consort Chen goes back because of worry, she will be another "Xuan Yuan Muqian."

"Now, although she is not in control of herself, she is at least well-fed and clothed, and has a certain degree of freedom. Therefore, in the short term, we will neither pick her up nor expose our cultivation."

Lu Yuanzhi paused and continued: "And this academy, the Dean also said that it won't be long before it dissolves."

Zhou Qing was stunned, shocked: "Dissolves?"

Lu Yuanzhi sighed lightly: "The Dean once said that he created this academy on a whim; his roots, after all, are not here."

Zhou Qing's heart stirred, remembering the Second Grandfather once said that Dean Weng Yunqi was not from the Holy Martial Dynasty and came here as if to heal his wounds.

Could it be that he is returning to his own cultivation country?

Lu Yuanzhi looked earnest and looked at Zhou Qing again: "So, we choose Taiqingmen, not just to repay kindness, but because there is nowhere else to go."

"At Taiqingmen, we can both teach Yaoyao and share Soul Severance experiences with the elders."

"And we will hide our tracks, never exposing our identities, nor will we bring trouble to your sect. Do you think that's okay?"

Zhou Qing, hearing this, was already moved, then stepped back and bowed respectfully: "I, Zhou Qing, on behalf of Taiqingmen, warmly welcome you both to join!"

Lu Yuanzhi's face instantly showed a smile, and she also stepped back and bowed solemnly: "Many thanks! Being able to join Taiqingmen is our sisters' honor. In the future, I hope for your care."

After staying at the academy for a while, Zhou Qing bid farewell to Lin Daochen and Lu Yuanzhi and boarded the flying boat to the border again.

Looking at the receding academy buildings, Zhou Qing pondered.

If the academy really has a day to dissolve, Taiqingmen might become a new habitat for Master Lin.

It's just that such an invitation is too abrupt; if mentioned rashly, it would appear deliberate, so it's better to wait for the opportunity.

On the flying boat, Shen Yunzhou caught a glimpse of the smile that Zhou Qing couldn't hide and immediately leaned over.

Raising his eyebrows, he teased: "Yo, what good news is this? Laughing so happily, could it be you found a clue?"

Zhou Qing's expression straightened, and he shook his head: "Don't guess blindly, just remembered some interesting things."

"You are really strange; Shijie hasn't been found yet, and you still have the heart to be happy." Shen Yunzhou smacked his lips, "But this mentality is admirable."

Zhou Qing's face was awkward, glanced at Jiang Pojun who was steering in front, silently shook his head, and swallowed the words that were about to come out.

Afterward, he stood up, looking at the mountains and rivers flying backward under the clouds, calculating secretly.

"Five years, just wait five years, and Taiqingmen can welcome two Soul Severance realm guest elders. When encountering difficulties again, there will be no need to be as tied up as now."

Thinking of this, Zhou Qing felt a sense of relief in his heart.

Of course, to forge iron, one must be strong oneself.

He also has to work harder, striving to break through to the late Divine Transformation stage as soon as possible.

But every step of the Divine Transformation realm is like walking on thin ice, not only requiring massive spiritual power accumulation but also constant polishing and perfecting of the realm of understanding.

"The Four Flowers Gathering at the Top constitution makes the spiritual power I need for every breakthrough several times that of the same rank. Relying solely on spirit stones and heavenly materials and earthly treasures simply cannot satisfy it."

Zhou Qing frowned, "Once absorption reaches saturation, I must wait for the spiritual power to be thoroughly refined before I can continue cultivation."

After pondering for a moment, Zhou Qing's eyes became sharp: "It seems I still have to rely on the 【Blood Phoenix Tribulation Crystal】 recorded in the inscription-level divine ability to directly refine others' essence and spiritual power."

"Not only is there no side effect, but it is also the fastest way to break through."

"It's just that to display the complete blood wing phantom, I must condense at least five Phoenix Dao patterns; now I am still missing three."

"That is to say, I still need at least thirty supreme-grade wood-attribute spirit stones."

Zhou Qing looked at the Enlightenment Ancient Tea and five wood-attribute spirit stones in the storage bag and let out a long breath.

"Helping Xuan Yuan Shuo this time, I just happened to earn half. For the rest, perhaps I can take this opportunity to find a way from those Demon Emperors!"

Wealth is sought in danger; what if I gamble!

Thinking of this, a flash of ruthlessness flashed in Zhou Qing's eyes, and even more madness surged.

Just like that, after a month of rushing day and night, the three changed teleportation arrays in multiple prefectures and finally arrived at the border.

From afar, he saw Xuan Yuan Shuo laughing and welcoming them out, the dark patterns on his robe shimmering in the sunlight: "Little Friend Zhou, I finally waited for you to come!"

Zhou Qing bowed: "Greetings, Senior Xuan Yuan!"

"We are all family, skip these empty rituals!" Xuan Yuan Shuo held him up, "I've already prepared a welcome banquet, come in quickly!"

While speaking, he inadvertently glanced at Shen Yunzhou.

Zhou Qing hurriedly introduced: "This is a good friend of mine, Shen Yunzhou, who wants to come to the border to see the world."

Shen Yunzhou paid his respects.

Xuan Yuan Shuo nodded slightly and led the two inside warmly.

After eating and drinking, Xuan Yuan Shuo invited Zhou Qing to the study alone, first asking about the Second Grandfather's recent situation, and then detailing the border situation.

It was roughly the same as what Jiang Pojun said, but with a few more secret plans.

Zhou Qing deliberated carefully and nodded in agreement.

"No time to lose, we set off for Taiyao Mountain in three days!" Xuan Yuan Shuo finalized the plan and turned to leave.

Strangely, from beginning to end, the two tacitly avoided the matter of soul searching and spirit stones, as if those unpleasant things had never happened.

The next day, Shen Yunzhou couldn't hold back his curiosity and grabbed Zhou Qing to ask: "I see Senior Xuan Yuan is quite bold; what exactly did he ask you to help with this time?"

Zhou Qing shook his head.

After all, the matter of him pretending to be the Peng Emperor was only known to him, Xuan Yuan Shuo, and the Second Grandfather from beginning to end.

This is considered a confidential matter, and it was already agreed that it cannot be easily leaked.

Seeing Zhou Qing didn't want to say, Shen Yunzhou didn't ask further, but still said sincerely: "If he threatens you, just tell your brother; I have my own ways to deal with him."

Zhou Qing looked at the hot concern leaping in Shen Yunzhou's eyes, and a warm current surged in his heart.

Although this guy often causes trouble for Number Six, he is impeccable in his dealings with people.

"Many thanks, I have my own measure!" Zhou Qing patted his shoulder and said.

And hearing that Zhou Qing had arrived, Lu Jinghong and other deputy generals who had fought with him soon came.

As they caught up, bursts of hearty laughter soon rang out in the room.

Some even wanted to spar again, but were refused by Zhou Qing; after all, they were about to take action, so they couldn't make mistakes at a critical moment.

Just like that, three days later, Xuan Yuan Shuo quietly left the border defense with Zhou Qing and headed straight for Taiyao Mountain.

And Shen Yunzhou poked his head out from behind a broken wall, secretly wiped his nose, and muttered: "Let me see what you are taking Brother Zhou to do?"

After speaking, he also quietly followed.

A few days later, the two quietly slipped into Taiyao Mountain.

Compared to last time, the defense of this demon mountain was much stricter now.

Almost all kinds of demonic beasts were guarding the sky and the ground.

It can be seen that the strategist-level old monkey had governed the entire demon territory flawlessly during the years the "Peng Emperor was in seclusion."

Until the two approached the central area of Black Feather Peak, where clouds and mist swirled, and two demon kings who still retained wing characteristics stood there.

"Besides the old monkey, the Peng Emperor has five direct subordinates, namely Xuan Hu, Chi Xiao Falcon, Ghost Kite, Cloud-Splitting Sparrow, and Bone Crow; you should recognize these."

Xuan Yuan Shuo whispered.

Zhou Qing nodded, his eyes locked on the cave entrance.

Guarding there were exactly the Xuan Hu emitting a cold aura and the Chi Xiao Falcon surrounded by flames.

When they were looting inside the cave back then, the Second Grandfather and Xuan Yuan Shuo joined forces to capture these demon kings, erasing their memories and implanting some scenes of false cognition.

"Here, this is a puppet I asked Brother Daye for when I left last time; in case of need, it can transform into the appearance of the Peng Emperor Feng Feng Xuan Ling, which is convenient for acting!"

Xuan Yuan Shuo took out a puppet carved with complex patterns from the storage bag.

Feeling the familiar aura on it, Zhou Qing suddenly missed the Second Grandfather a bit.

Back then, to make up for his own realm of understanding, for three years, the Second Grandfather didn't know how many such puppets he gave him, and then transformed into Li Hanshan's appearance to challenge the sect masters and elders of various sects.

Imprinting his own Nascent Soul amplification on this is definitely not easy, but thinking of the scene he saw in Shen Hanyi's forbidden area some time ago, he couldn't help but want to laugh.

However—

Since there is a puppet, Xuan Yuan Shuo could completely disguise himself; there is no need for him to come, right?

Unless, he has other plans!

"Take this Taiyao Token too; you can smoothly enter the five-colored array. I will lure them away later, and you take the opportunity to go in!"

Xuan Yuan Shuo handed over another token engraved with demon script.

Just as Zhou Qing took the token, Xuan Yuan Shuo's face suddenly became solemn: "Also, like last time, keep it on you."

"At a critical moment, it can exert a blow of the mid-stage Soul Severance realm, but don't use it if you don't have to; to condense it, this Prince really exhausted his heart and blood."

Before the words were finished, he suddenly pointed to his brow, and immediately after, a miniature Xuan Yuan Shuo figure slowly peeled off from it.

And Xuan Yuan Shuo's face suddenly turned pale.

Zhou Qing did not hesitate at all and took it.

Now is not the time to be polite; what he is facing is several Demon Emperors who don't know how many years they have lived.

Any slight negligence and he will be doomed.

"I have already told you the plan; to be on the safe side, I will guide you in the dark, and I will show up if necessary!"

Xuan Yuan Shuo supported himself and patted Zhou Qing's shoulder, his eyes full of solemnity.

"Don't worry, I know what to do!" Zhou Qing smiled slightly.

Xuan Yuan Shuo nodded and quietly left.

Not long after, Xuan Hu and Chi Xiao Falcon, who were chatting at the cave entrance, suddenly stiffened, vigilantly scanning toward the right side.

After looking at each other, they almost simultaneously grabbed their weapons and shot away, leaving two afterimages in the air.

And Zhou Qing, seizing the opportunity, had silver light flickering under his feet, quickly approaching the cave.

The moment he took out the Taiyao Token, he hurriedly injected spiritual power to activate it.

Seeing the token's light flourish, the five-colored restriction directly rippled; he took the opportunity to push open the stone door, his figure flashed, and he disappeared into the cave.

Within a few breaths, Xuan Hu and Chi Xiao Falcon returned with confused faces and resumed their guard.

Inside the cave, Zhou Qing leaned against the stone door, his chest heaving violently, feeling it was so exciting.

He leaned his ear against the stone door again, held his breath, and after confirming he hadn't been discovered, his tense body relaxed, and he let out a long breath.

Then, looking at the empty cave in front of him, he couldn't help but smile bitterly.

When the three of them came last time, they really moved everything away.

Now only bare stone walls remain, nothing else.

After all, even the corpse of Master Situ Jiuyao in the secret room was taken away by Xuan Yuan Shuo.

Afterward, he took out a jade slip; this was given to him by Xuan Yuan Shuo, and it was all the information he had collected over the years.

For example, the two demon kings standing outside, the Peng Emperor liked to call them "A-Hu" and "A-Sun" on weekdays.

And the old monkey himself is a red-bearded ape; even if he is old and his hair is sparse, in the Peng Emperor's mouth, he is always that "Red Mao Fa" with a bit of intimacy.

"Fortunately, when I pretended to be the Peng Emperor last time, I didn't have too much contact with these demon kings, otherwise it would have been easy to reveal the truth!"

Zhou Qing looked at the jade slip, and the relevant information inside had already been memorized in these three days.

After thinking clearly, Zhou Qing stared at the puppet again, pondered for a moment, and decided not to use it for now.

Immediately afterward, he carefully checked every corner of the cave again, and after confirming there were no omissions, he let out a long breath.

In an instant, golden light burst from Zhou Qing's body, directly transforming into the first form of the Jin Peng true body.

Under his deliberate control, his figure was much smaller than in his prime, but still imposing.

As for the second human form, except for being golden all over and a pair of wings, the rest was basically the same as his appearance, which was easy to reveal.

Afterward, he used the "Void Realm Dharma Image" to completely restrain his aura to the level of an ordinary person.

This kind of truth and falsehood is the most deceptive.

After being ready, Zhou Qing cleared his throat, imitated the Peng Emperor's vicissitudes of voice, hummed a few times, and took out the Taiyao Token again.

Xuan Hu and Chi Xiao Falcon, who were chatting in low voices outside, turned their heads subconsciously after hearing the friction of the stone door, their gazes instantly freezing.

Only to see a Golden-Winged Peng standing proudly at the cave entrance, its feathers seemingly cast from the purest gold, flowing with dazzling runes.

Its eagle eyes were like two rounds of purple electricity; scanning between them made them tremble together, and between its wings, there was a faint roar of wind and thunder.

There was even an aura of nobility and majesty rushing toward them, making one unable to help but want to worship.

The two demon kings were stunned for a moment, then showed wild joy and hurriedly bowed.

"Great King, you have finally come out of seclusion!"

Facing their kowtowing, Zhou Qing nodded slightly, and two sharp claws covered in golden scales stepped out slowly.

Every step down seemed to shatter the void, and ripples appeared in the air.

He lowered his voice and said in a tone full of vicissitudes: "A-Hu, A-Sun, you have worked hard during this time!"

"Guarding my Emperor is the glory of the subordinates!" The two demon kings' faces flushed red, shouting excitedly, their eyes flashing with fanatical light.

Zhou Qing nodded with satisfaction, then pretended to talk to himself inadvertently: "I didn't expect this transformation to seem to make this Emperor a bit younger; it's really a bit of a surprise."

Hearing Zhou Qing's words, the two demon kings congratulated him again.

No wonder the voice sounded a bit strange; so that's how it is; this is a sign of returning to simplicity!

"What about Red Mao Fa and the others?" The next moment, Zhou Qing's eyes became sharp, and he asked in a deep voice.

Xuan Hu hurriedly replied: "Back to the Great King, the strategist has recently been appeasing the emotions of other restless demon kings; I will go call them now."

After speaking, he immediately transformed into a stream of light and quickly disappeared into the horizon.

Zhou Qing frowned, showing a look of doubt, turned to look at Chi Xiao Falcon: "Appeasing? Are they preparing to rebel again recently?"

Chi Xiao Falcon hurriedly explained: "Great King, you misunderstood, but it has indeed been a bit chaotic recently; the Spider Emperor has fallen... the Qing Luo Beast Emperor said it was you who found someone to do it... the Dragon Emperor is looking for you for help..."

In the dark not far away, Xuan Yuan Shuo looked at Zhou Qing listening to Chi Xiao Falcon's report in a decent manner and couldn't help but smile.

"This little guy, he really acts like he's doing it!"

Remembering the first time he transformed into the Peng Emperor, Zhou Qing cheated thirty supreme-grade spirit stones from both the Spider Emperor and the Dragon Emperor; he was really bold!

Soon, the old monkey, leaning on a cane, accompanied by the four direct demon kings, Ghost Kite, Cloud-Splitting Sparrow, and Bone Crow, rushed over, their eyes full of excitement and awe.

"Red Mao Fa, you have worked hard these years!" Zhou Qing looked at the old monkey and sighed.

The old monkey's hair was sparse and messy, hanging like withered grass on his hunched body; at this moment, his turbid eyes couldn't help but well up with tears.

He shook his head vigorously, his voice hoarse: "This is the subordinate's duty; being able to share worries for the Great King is the old minister's glory!"

Zhou Qing nodded slightly, his expression solemn: "I have heard the situation from A-Sun; this time, for us, it is an opportunity and a challenge."

"Pass my order: demon kings who want to go to the Dragon Emperor's abandoned territory can lead their clansmen to loot."

"But at least they must be at the Demon Commander level, and their mental power must meet the standard; don't fail to get benefits and instead become someone else's tomb-guarding beast."

Cloud-Splitting Sparrow and other demon kings, hearing this, had excited light burst from their eyes and shouted in unison.

"Yes! We will go pass it on! Great King, you don't know, everyone has been looking forward to this day, just waiting for your order!"

After giving the order, Zhou Qing turned his gaze to the old monkey: "The Spider Emperor's territory is now mostly occupied by the Dragon Emperor, and it is confronting the two Demon Emperors, Wei Lun Yao and Qing Luo Beast, right?"

The old monkey leaned on his cane and said solemnly: "That's right, besides them, there is also the Tiger Emperor in the depths of the mountain range, and the human border also has movements."

Zhou Qing pondered for a moment and said steadily: "Okay, this Emperor has roughly understood the situation; leave it to me next, you all just guard Taiyao Mountain well."

"Yes!" Several demon kings bowed in unison.

With the Great King coming out of seclusion this time, their backbone is finally back.

Afterward, Zhou Qing looked into the distance without a trace, and then suddenly, as if thinking of something, said: "Does anyone else have extra supreme-grade wood-attribute spirit stones?"

The demon kings looked at each other and shook their heads; Zhou Qing couldn't help but feel disappointed.

Just then, the old monkey suddenly spoke: "I heard that the Thousand Illusion Secret Cave of the Spider Emperor dug out a mineral vein back then, hiding many supreme-grade wood-attribute spirit stones."

"It's just that I don't know how the consumption has been over the years? Are there any left? Plus, with four Demon Emperors entrenched there now, I'm afraid—"

Hearing this, Zhou Qing's eyes lit up.

"Understood, you all wait for orders here, this Emperor is going to the Thousand Illusion Secret Cave!"

After giving the order, Zhou Qing stepped forward, golden light burst from his body, and he instantly transformed into a ten-thousand-foot giant Peng.

The huge wings spread out, covering the sky and the sun, and as they flapped gently, they directly set off a strong hurricane.

Several demon kings looked at this spectacular scene, their eyes full of excitement and worship.

Not far away, Xuan Yuan Shuo, who saw this scene, also quietly followed.

When Zhou Qing's huge figure appeared at the Thousand Illusion Secret Cave, the scene before him was shocking.

The entire secret cave was filled with smoke and dust, and the air was filled with a strong stench of rot.

All kinds of demonic beast corpses lay horizontally and vertically on the ground, and broken remains were scattered everywhere.

The Spider Emperor's territory of the past, now with her fall, had actually become like this.

Seeing this, Zhou Qing shook his head slightly; after all, who told her to seek her own death back then, actually trying to control Number Six.

She didn't even look at the gap between the two sides.

Afterward, he hissed toward the sky, the sound wave resounding through the entire Thousand Illusion Secret Cave like thunder.

Soon, a dark cloud rolled over, and a black dragon covered in cyan-black scales spiraled out.

The Dragon Emperor Xuan Qiu shouted excitedly: "Brother Feng, you finally came!"

Zhou Qing nodded slightly, and before he could speak, water mist steamed in the distance, and a giant beast with a body as huge as a hill stepped through the air.

It had thick and powerful limbs, looking like a turtle but not a turtle, and the azure scales shone with cold light in the sun, especially now that flowing water was streaming between the gaps of the scales.

It was exactly the Qing Luo Beast that Zhou Qing had seen on the island before.

"Brother Feng, we meet again!" Although the Qing Luo Beast's tone was warm, the look in his eyes when looking at Zhou Qing couldn't hide his awe.

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 276 =====